Flush valve for bowls



Oct. 24, 1933.

J. A. MITCHELL FLUSH VALVE FOR BOWLS Filed Feb.` 20, 1932 Patented Oct. 24, 1933 PATENr orricl:

1,932,224 FLUSH VALVE Foa oWLs James Americus Mitchell, St. Louis, Mo., assigner of one-third to Walter J. kJohnson and onethird to William T. Johnson, both of St. Louis,

Application February 20, 1932. i Serial No. 594,306

4 Claims.

This invention relates to toilet flush valves and particularly to those valves in which a manually operable member is used to start the flushing action, the flushing action then-continuing automatically for a predetermined length of time depending upon the adjustment of the mechanism.

The general object of the present invention'is to provide a toiletushing means of a very simple character which is thoroughly effective and in which the water within the flush tank, which tank is disposed immediately above the bowl, is given a whirling motion which discharges it into the bowl with considerable force and thoroughly cleans the bowl.

A further object is to provide means whereby this water may be discharged under pressure greater than the pressure of the water itself .c

A still further object is to provide means whereby the iiush valve is prevented from a rapid re- Iturn movement to a closed position but has a gradual return movement which may be regulated to secure any desired speed of closing.

Other objects will appear in the course of the following description.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, whereinz# Figure 1 is a vertical sectional View through a flush tank constructed in accordance with my invention;

Figure 2 is a sectional view through the wall of the pneumatic cylinder showing the means for regulating the passage of air therethrough.

Referring to this drawing, 10 designates a tank which may be located at any suitable point above the usual bowl (not shown). The tank is provided with the outlet opening 11 and with anV inlet pipe 12 disposed adjacent the upper end of the the tank and having a downwardly extending discharge portion 13 disposed, as illustrated, at right angles to the body of the pipe 12 and parallel to the sides of the tank 10. The lower end of the tank 10 is conical as at 14 to provide a valve seat 15 within which the valve 16 seats. This valve seat may be of brass and the valve of brass. Extending upward from the valve is the stem 17 which is also preferably of brass. Disposed within the upper end of the tank 10 is a cylindrical casing 18 through which the stem 17 operates. The upper end of the stem extends through the top of this casing and is provided with the cam lever 19, the under face of which is eccentric or cam-shaped so that as the lever 19 is forced downward, its under face will bear against the top of the casing 19 and causing the ,valve to be lifted.

Attached to the stem 17 and disposed within the casing is a washer or like element 2O and bearing against this washer or disk 20 is the leather gasket 21 acting as a plunger and fitting against the side wall of the casing 18. Within the lower portion of the housing or casing 18 is disposed a packing 22 and packing is a packing nut 23. In the side of the casing 18 is an air hole 24 having an adjustable plug or valve whereby the amount of air entering the casing 18 or expelled therefrom may be condisposed over this trolled. Above the washer 20 there is provided the coiled compression spring 25 which urges the plunger downward. In the operation of -this valve, when it is desired to iiush the toilet, the handle 19 is raised against the action of the spring 25. As the plunger is raised, air is drawn in through the opening 24. As soon as the valve 16 is lifted from its seat, the water is discharged downward from the tank 10 and from the inlet opening 13. The water discharged through this pipe 13 causes the water in the tank to begin a whirling motion, which sends it down through the bowl with great pressure. This is because the pipe 132is disposed closely adjacent the wall of the tank 10 and discharges downward into the hopper-shaped portion 14 closely adjacent the margin of the hopper-shaped portion so that water so discharged from the pipe 13 is discharged downward and inward which acts to give the body of water a rotative motion within the lower portion of the tank and thus a rotative motion as the water is discharged from the tank into the bowl.

If there is thirty pounds of pressure in the inlet pipe, discharging this water into the tank 10 builds up the pressure to sixty pounds and thus the Water is discharged into the bowl with sixty pounds pressure. As soon as the .handle 19 is released, the spring 25 will urge the valve 16 to its seat, but the return of the valve to its seat is retarded by the air which has entered through the opening 24 and which is disposed between the gasket 21 and the packing nut 23 so that there is a slow return of this valve 16 and of the stem to which it is attached, the rapidity of this return being regulatable by regulating the air valve in the opening 24.

It will be seen that this flushing tank and valve is very easily installed, that it is so simple that very few repairs are needed, that no backing boards or backing tank are needed, that the rst water discharged into the bowl is discharged under pressure of the water head plus the air pressure within the tank 10 and that after this pressure in pipe 12.

has been discharged if the handle 19 be still held depressed the water will be discharged under the The air inlet 241s, of course, to be so regulated that the valve 16 will not close until the volume of water needed to ordinarily flush the bowl has been discharged.

1. A closet iiushing means comprising a tank having an outlet at its lower end formed with a valve seat, an inlet pipe entering the upper portion of the tank below the top thereof, a valve coacting with said seat, a stem extending upward from the Valve, means urging' said stem in a direction to seat the valve, manually operable means directly engaging the valve stem for'flift-- ing the stem against said urging means, and adjustable means for retarding the return of the valve to its seat.

2. Closet flushing means including a tank having a discharge opening formed with a valve seat, an inlet pipe entering the tank, a valve coacting with the seat and having a stem, a casing through which the upper end of the stem passes, means urging the stem in a direction to close the valve, manually operable means for lifting the stem, a plunger carried by the stem, movable vertically therewith and tting said casing, and regulatable means for permitting the entrance and exit of air into or from the interior of said Y casing below said plunger `whereby to retard the descent of the plunger, the stem and the Valve to its seat. A

3. A closet iiushing means including a tank having a discharge opening formed with a valve seat, an inlet pipe entering the tank, a valve coacting with the seat and having a stem, a casing in the upper portion of the tank and through which the stem passes, a packing means in the lower portion of said casing and through which -the stem passes, a plunger carried by the stem and fitting said casing and disposed above the packing means, there being a constricted air inlet opening in the side Wall of the casing just below the plunger, and a spring urging said plunger downward.

4Q A closet flushing means comprising a tank.

having an outlet at its lower end formed with a valve seat, an inlet pipe entering the tank below the top thereof, a valve coacting with said seat, av 

